Wyoming beats Montana State 79-54

LARAMIE, Wyo. -- Riley Grabau continued his red-hot shooting from 3-point range, sinking all five of his shots from beyond the arc and scoring 19 points to lead Wyoming past Montana State 79-54 on Saturday night.

Josh Adams added 17 points while Nathan Sobey and Jerron Granberry had 11 points apiece for Wyoming (5-2), which shot 71 percent from 3-point range (10 of 14). Granberry was 3 of 3 from distance and had a game-high five assists.

Michael Dison, Paul Egwuonwu and Terrell Brown each had nine points for Montana State (2-5), which shot 57 percent in the first half and trailed only 37-32 at the break. After intermission, the Cowboys outshot the Bobcats 81 percent to 31 percent and outscored Montana State 42-22.

Grabau, who scored 15 in the first half, is shooting 68 percent for the season (21 of 31). He leads the Cowboys with 15 points per game.

"Riley's shooting out of his mind right now," Adams said.

Wyoming coach Larry Shyatt was disappointed in his team's defensive edge in the first half.

"I did not see it. I did not feel it," he said. "We were trading shots, but that's now how this club operates."

It quickly turned after halftime. Adams and Sobey keyed a 16-3 spurt to open the second period, leaving the Cowboys up 53-35 with 14 minutes to play. Sobey had a 3 and two driving layups while Adams slammed down a couple dunks during the surge. Montana State, which failed to score on 11 of its first 13 possessions of the second half, drew no closer than 13 points after Wyoming's outburst.

"I think it started with stops and gang rebounding," Shyatt said of the second-half run. "We exploded out of the gate and got some easy looks."

Montana State coach Brad Huse complimented Wyoming's discipline.

"We just had a hard time guarding them," he said. "They make you guard a long time and eventually you break down."

The Cowboys' Larry Nance Jr. led all rebounders with 11, his third game of the season in double-digit boards.

After four ties and eight lead changes in the first half, Wyoming eased ahead 37-30 after a 8-0 run featuring a pair of 3s by Grabau. The final score represented the largest margin of the contest.